Here's what was in the Weiner laptop emails, and why it matters

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January 04, 2018 12:12 PM EST

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's emails are back in the spotlight after President Trump's apparent call for a further investigation into her former aide Huma Abedin. Just two days later, The Daily Beast reported that the Department of Justice (DOJ) is "looking into" Clinton's emails.

The tweet appears to be a response to the State Department's release of 2,800 work-related emails from a personal laptop Abedin shared with her estranged husband, former Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-NY).

Five of the emails were found to be classified, leading to critics calling for a new investigation. The State Department released the emails last month following a suit by Judicial Watch, a conservative watchdog group, filed in May 2015. The Justice Department's decision predated the release of the emails, per Daily Beast reporter Betsy Woodruff.

Crooked Hillary Clinton’s top aid, Huma Abedin, has been accused of disregarding basic security protocols. She put Classified Passwords into the hands of foreign agents. Remember sailors pictures on submarine? Jail! Deep State Justice Dept must finally act? Also on Comey & others

"There are different levels of classification, but it means if the information gets out, it would harm our nation's national security, and that's what's troubling about the records being on the Wiener laptop, let alone any other non-secure communications device," Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton told Circa.

Included in the classified emails was information regarding talks between the terrorist group Hamas and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), conversations with the United Arab Emirates' foreign minister and a call to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Several of the emails released had some information redacted. But despite their existence, the FBI's review of this information did not change former Director James Comey's decision to not pursue charges against Clinton's "extremely careless" use of a private email server.

Normally, classified information is supposed to only be handled under controlled circumstances. Mishandling it can lead to prosecution and jail time.

"I think the American people want a thorough examination of what Hillary Clinton did," said Fitton. "President Trump was elected in part to drain the swamp, and part of the swamp mentality is that if, well, you know, you lose the election we don't ask any questions about your corruption from then on and that can't be the case anymore."

But public opinion on the Clinton investigation has been mixed. Comey's announcement of the discovery of new emails just before the 2016 election did not appear to have a great effect on the public's views of Clinton at the time.

In fact, Clinton led Trump by three points a week before Election Day, according to a Politico/Morning Consult poll.

A more recent Rassmussen poll released in September found 64 percent of voters believe Clinton is "likely to have broken the law by sending and receiving emails containing classified information through a private e-mail server while serving as secretary of State."

Abedin worked her way up from humble beginnings as an intern to one of Clinton's most trusted advisers. Her career with Clinton reached its zenith in 2009 when she was appointed as the former secretary's deputy chief of staff. The emails in question were sent during her time in this position.

The two were so close that Clinton was once quoted as saying: "I have one daughter, but if I had a second daughter, it would [be] Huma," during her wedding in 2010.

Abedin had a falling out with Weiner in 2016 after sexting allegations were made against him.